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Post by thelifeofmyferrets on Nov 4, 2013 20:02:31 GMT -5
I think I am getting worried too soon. I noticed that they are just leaving a couple heart pieces left. I'll just give it a couple more days. I won't give up!
I found an easier way to cut the meat. I cut it a little bit frozen so preparing their meals is much easier.
I'll try bone again. They have eaten it before but I stopped because Gus and Lucy were throwing it up so I signed up for a mentor because I thought I was trying it out to fast.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 5, 2013 7:08:54 GMT -5
Throwing it up? Like vomiting?
Eating bone should not cause that. Vomiting it usually from either a) eating too fast b) an allergic reaction or c) a blockage
If you have a cleaver, you can hack something into smaller pieces of bone to make it easier to start. Sliver up a chicken wing, a chicken/turkey neck or those pork button bones are excellent if you have them locally.
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Post by thelifeofmyferrets on Nov 5, 2013 14:49:50 GMT -5
I guess vomiting. They were throwing up white liquid. They weren't throwing up anything just the white liquid but I didn't know what to do so I just stop feeding it.
I have a cleaver and was using that to cut up the chicken wing. I'll look for necks, Thanksgiving is coming up so I can get turkey necks from the butcher.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 6, 2013 7:22:42 GMT -5
If you can cut turkey necks down into small segments it makes for a nice bone in meal. I do about 2" segments for my guys, I'll find chewed up vertebrae all over a few days later lol.
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Post by thelifeofmyferrets on Nov 8, 2013 8:23:14 GMT -5
I am thinking of getting a whole chicken. They can eat the whole chicken, bones and the meat, right? I haven't deboned a chicken in 3 years since Culinary School but it doesn't have to be fancy since it is just for the ferrets
I also figured out why they aren't eating all the organs. Eventually it gets stuck to the plate. Do you have any suggestions for that.
Yesterday, Gussy was eating liver and I was just sitting there watching him like a proud mama. Watching them eat is fun for me.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 8, 2013 19:21:47 GMT -5
They can eat nearly the whole chicken. The larger leg bones they won't fully eat, but they'll chew on them and break the ends off. I'd recommend pulling the wings and legs off and cutting the breasts off to help them if you can.
I use stoneware bowls, I don't find my guys having problems with food sticking. How wet/juicy are the organs that are sticking? (like, are they sitting in a pool of blood? that tends to get stickier). How long does the meat sit our for when it gets stuck on, and how big are the pieces? Dime sized pieces? Golf ball sized pieces? Etc
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Post by thelifeofmyferrets on Nov 8, 2013 21:01:51 GMT -5
Good to know. The pieces are sitting out for 3 hours before they stick. I have been pouring hot water and stirring the pieces to get them to eat them and it seems to be working. The pieces are like dime size.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 8, 2013 21:13:59 GMT -5
Ahh yeah the smaller pieces could be drying out faster and sticking. Mine get two to three inch cubes and they don't really stick unless a ferret ignores them and leaves them in the bowl for the whole day. Which they never do anymore, they carry them off to a hidey hole to get crusty.
I suspect once you convince them that bigger pieces are ok, it won't happen so much. Have you had any luck trying to increase the size of the pieces?
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Post by thelifeofmyferrets on Nov 9, 2013 9:41:36 GMT -5
I did cut up cube size chunks of thigh because they ate all the chicken slivers before Lucy got up. They are all eating it now!
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Post by Deleted on Nov 9, 2013 14:07:15 GMT -5
Wow great news! Keep trying the cubes for a few days, and if they like those still move up to a bigger size.
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Post by thelifeofmyferrets on Nov 12, 2013 9:25:13 GMT -5
To brighten your day: I tried to get my mom to smell "the famous grape tail" and Tilly poofed in her face.
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Post by thelifeofmyferrets on Nov 12, 2013 9:27:23 GMT -5
I noticed Lucy eating too fast so that was probably the cause of her throwing up before. I'll try them on bone again.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 12, 2013 19:32:47 GMT -5
LOL! You have intact ferrets/ferrets with scent glands? That is too funny, your poor mother must have keeled right over from the smell.
Eating too fast does happen occasionally with some ferrets. I had a boy start choking on a wing tip because he was gobbling the whole bowl down as fast as he could so he wouldn't have to share, there was like 20 something of them in the bowl. Luckily he coughed it up himself after a few seconds so I didn't have to attempt a ferret Heimlich. He did vomit a bit right after from the stress. So long as it's not a regular thing it shouldn't be a problem.
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Post by thelifeofmyferrets on Nov 12, 2013 20:54:17 GMT -5
They don't have their scent glands, so I guess it is not technically a poof but it was still funny.
They are getting better at eating the bigger pieces but one thing is that they are messy eaters. They have chicken everywhere.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 13, 2013 7:18:53 GMT -5
Ahhh ok. So it was more of a rectal "toot" lol. Ferrets are messy eaters, agreed. A box or tote to use as a feeding den might help, because at least then they're dragging the meat around in there and you can wipe out a tote easily or throw away a box and replace with a new one.
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